Mental health emergencies
Authors: E. Coutinho, M. Fenton, C. Campbell, A. David, E. Walker, R. Orange-Bromehead, Z. Atakan, T. Davies, I. B Kerr, D. Taylor
Journal: BMJ (1997)

# Details of studies of zuclopenthixol acetate are needed {#article-title-2} Editor—The issue of mental health emergencies is rarely addressed. As we are currently working with the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group to produce a systematic review on the use of zuclopenthixol acetate for acutely disturbed people, we were interested to see that Zerrin Atakan and Teifion Davies recommend its use in certain circumstances.1 Despite our best efforts at searching electronic databases such as Biological Abstracts, the Cochrane Library, Embase, LILIACS, Medline, PsycLIT, and PSYNDEX and many conference proceedings, and contacting Lundbeck, we have found only three fully published controlled clinical trials from which data can be extracted.2 3 4 The paucity of studies may be due to the great difficulty in carrying out trials of emergency treatment in psychiatry, but the fact that all three identified studies give equivocal results suggests that the recommendation of zuclopenthixol acetate in preference to other treatments may be premature. We would welcome any information that the authors or others may have on any controlled clinical trials, published or unpublished, relating to this issue. 1. 1.↵1. Atakan Z, 2. Davies T . ABC of mental health. Mental health emergencies. BMJ 1997;314:1740–2. (14 June.) [OpenUrl][1][FREE Full Text][2] 2. 2.↵1. Baestrup PC, 2. Alhfors UG, 3. Bjerkenstedt L, 4. Dencker SJ, 5. Fensbo C, 6. Gravem A et al. A controlled Nordic multicentre study of zuclopenthixol acetate in oil solution, haloperidol and zuclopenthixol in the treatment of acute psychosis. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1993;87:48–58. 3. 3.↵1. Bourdouxhe S, 2. Mirel J, 3. Denys W, 4. Bobon D . L'acetate de zuclopenthixol et l'haloperidol dans la psychose aigue. Resultats du sous-groupe AMDP d'une etude multicentrique belge. [Zuclopenthixol acetate and haloperidol in acute psychoses. Results of the AMDP subgroup in a multicentre Belgian study.] Acta Psychiatr Belg 1987;87:236–44. [OpenUrl][3][PubMed][4] 4. 4.↵1. Chouinard G, 2. Safadi G, 3. Beauclair L . A double-blind controlled study of intramuscular zuclopenthixol acetate and liquid oral haloperidol in the treatment of schizophrenic patients with acute exacerbation. J Clin Psychopharmacol 1994;14:377–84. # Patients need to be monitored when given rapid tranquillisation {#article-title-7} Editor—Zerrin Atakan and Teifion Davies have a box listing precautions with rapid tranquillisation in their article in the ABC of mental health.1 With the use of the doses suggested, some patients … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DBMJ%26rft.stitle%253DBMJ%26rft.issn%253D0007-1447%26rft.aulast%253DAtakan%26rft.auinit1%253DZ.%26rft.volume%253D314%26rft.issue%253D7096%26rft.spage%253D1740%26rft.epage%253D1740%26rft.atitle%253DABC%2Bof%2Bmental%2Bhealth%253A%2BMental%2Bhealth%2Bemergencies%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F9202506%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/ijlink?linkType=FULL&journalCode=bmj&resid=314/7096/1740&atom=%2Fbmj%2F315%2F7112%2F884.atom [3]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DActa%2Bpsychiatrica%2BBelgica%26rft.stitle%253DActa%2BPsychiatr%2BBelg%26rft.aulast%253DBourdouxhe%26rft.auinit1%253DS.%26rft.volume%253D87%26rft.issue%253D2%26rft.spage%253D236%26rft.epage%253D244%26rft.atitle%253D%255BZuclopenthixol%2Bacetate%2Band%2Bhaloperidol%2Bin%2Bacute%2Bpsychoses.%2BResults%2Bof%2Bthe%2BAMDP%2Bsubgroup%2Bin%2Ba%2Bmulticenter%2BBelgian%2Bstudy%255D%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F3618274%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [4]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=3618274&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fbmj%2F315%2F7112%2F884.atom